Technology

As backsheet manufacturers aim to keep up with cost reductions up and down the PV supply chain, new processes and materials are appearing, with claims to offer better performance as a moisture barrier, as well as better acetic acid permeability and higher reflectivity, among other features. pv magazine examines the state of the market for PV backsheets, and takes a look at some of the new material innovations that are gaining ground with module manufacturers.

Although the “solar flow battery” is currently considered too expensive by its own creators, a further improvement of its design and the use of emerging solar materials and new electrochemistry may open new opportunities for this kind of technology.

This means that this promising material, contrary to common belief, is able to form domains of polarized strain to minimize elastic energy. The research team made its discovery by using multimodal imaging.

The Belgian research institute developed its cell in partnership with EnergyVille, Solliance and German research center, ZSW.

pv magazine’s Future PV Roundtable, held at the 2018 Renewable Energy India (REI) Expo in Greater Noida, discussed how India can better adopt bifacial solar cell and module technology – the future of power generation. Prominent industry speakers also put forth their views on how standards can catalyze solar innovation for India-specific challenges, and on PV materials and components for enhanced module efficiency and recycling.

In an interview with pv magazine, vice president of GoodWe, Ron Shen, talks about the company’s plans for Germany, Spain, Africa and India, in addition to its goal to triple production capacity to 15 GW in China. He also discusses the effect of China’s 31/5 policy change, and plans for an initial public offering (IPO).

By adopting resource efficiency measures, the Indian PV solar manufacturing sector can reduce its material requirement from an estimated 12 million tons to 8.2 million tons by 2030. The resource-efficient approach will also increase efficiency to more than 30% from 6% in 2018, according to a study conducted under the European Union’s Resource Efficiency Initiative (EU-REI) Project.

After a pre-bid meeting with solar power developers on September 6, India’s Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) is looking to amend the tender document, which it hopes to upload to its website in the coming days, following approval from the ministry, according to a SECI spokesperson.

The benefits of deploying bifacial solar panels on single-axis trackers are touted like snake oil these days, with promises of anywhere from 5 to 50% gains in energy output compared with a monofacial panel. Unfortunately, the field data that might delineate the actual energy gain of a bifacial panel on a tracker are hard to acquire, and the data that are available typically describe small-scale tests under tightly defined conditions.

Following hot on the heels of Exide Industries, lead acid battery maker, Indian-based Amara Raja Batteries Limited has said it will set up a 100 MWh lithium ion assembly plant in Andhra Pradesh. The company aims to establish a foothold in the energy storage market for electric vehicles.